Wednesday, June 3, 2015

The Power of Print

Is your marketing primarily, or only digital? While a digital presence is essential in business today, the power of printing can play a vital role in the survival and growth of a business.

Think about the weekly sales circular you get from the local market. Maybe it's a little farther out than the big box store, maybe it has less selection, but chicken is on sale for half the price of the big box!

You'll go out of your way to take advantage of the sale, and print was the driving factor in that decision.

The following is a true story related by one of our team members:

"A few years ago, we had a team that did marketing and promotions for local businesses, concerts and events. We did graphic design and other digital media, had a street team for flyer distribution and posting large print in prominent locations throughout the city.

There was a new club that opened on the very outskirts of the West Loop in Chicago, a popular area for nightlife. It had great decor and a nice atmosphere, but was struggling to stay open. Being a bit further out than the other venues, it didn't have great visibility or foot traffic.

One of our team members stopped in for a drink and started a conversation with what turned out to be the club owner. He suggested they get some flyers printed and distributed to grow the location.

After some negotiation, and a bit of skepticism, they struck a deal for 2,000 flyers, distributed, for next Saturday's party.

The owner was skeptical, as he had a good fan base on his Facebook business page, with well over 5,000 likes. He would often have hundreds of people at a time say they'd be attending an event, but the real number was closer to 50 who would actually show up. He wasn't sure flyers would have much impact.

Fast forward to next Saturday night. Friday, our street team fanned out to various hot spots around the city and distributed all the flyers. We went to check out the crowd, and the club was packed!

Beyond capacity, there was a nice line halfway down the sidewalk. The owner was more than pleased, of course, and from that point had a weekly order of 5,000 flyers to distribute, every weekend.

He went from struggling with one club, to opening a second one, as well as a sports bar.

He's now quite successful, and the turning point was print. At the time he wasn't doing so well, he was contemplating going back to work for his former finance company.

If you'd like to be a successful entrepreneur, I'd suggest recognizing the power of print to drive your business growth. "

Throughout history, print has shaped and influenced the world, and been responsible for the growth of civilizations and empires.